There’s a mobile phone repair shop next to where we live. Everything in the window is faded from the sun. In 6 years of living here I have not seen it open or someone inside even once.

I was a project manager for a pretty large project last year at my job. I really tried my best to shield the developers from all the bullshit. We had a very difficult customer who changed their mind almost twice a week about things, demanded meetings about the progress 2-3 times a week, didn’t understand that the requested changes won’t be in the testsystem within a day of mentioning them (not even sending us a proper change request in writing, just mentioning them in a meeting) and so on. Not to mention talking with the higher-ups who got nervous when the customer kept complaining and explaining to them that we/the devs are working as fast as possible and that the customer is being unreasonable.

The worst part about that role was not the utterly irrational customer but our own colleagues in development. They unloaded all their frustration about the project on me. I tried to handle it, in a way it’s part of the job. I got shit on by the customer for not meeting their unreasonable demands and ridiculous timelines, got shit on by upper management because this project with this very important customer is having trouble, had to defend myself AND the rest of the team by showing that the customer doesn’t know what they want. Just to then turn around and get screamed at by a dev because he’s sick of having to go to our 1/2-hour-a-week meeting and also how come there’s been four change requests already. He told me I wasn’t doing my job, because all he wants is to implement the requirements as planned half a year ago but I kept sending change requests instead of doing my job as a project manager and shielding him from this shit. Wouldn’t believe me that if the customer had his way, he’d be getting four change requests per week.

Yeah, I’m pissed and also currently looking for a new job. And no way am I ever doing this shit job again, where you’re just everybody’s doormat and get yelled at by customers, bosses and your own team alike.

Yeah, that’s the other thing. I was a teenager in the 90s and just walking up to someone in public to hit on them or flirting with people who are working was seen as weird back then too. You met people through hobbies, school, parties or clubs.

“Approaching in public” can mean so many different things. What most women have a problem with is being approached in a situation where the man has some form of power over her. For example a cashier or server has to be friendly and smile or she will risk her job. Being approached is uncomfortable, because too many men don’t understand it when the no comes with a smile. They are also in a position of power, because they can complain about her or make a scene and get her in trouble.

In this case the TSA agent has some form of power over her and could give her trouble if she refuses. She has no way of knowing if a “no” will be met with understanding or with him holding her up, being insistent, keeping her from passing. That’s what makes it especially uncomfortable.

NRW. Rheinland, um genau zu sein. Hier gibt es auch seeehr viele “Wir haben das schon immer so gemacht”-Leute.

You know what the worst thing is? He wasn’t the only one by far. Later at a different company another Teamleader told me I have to go out to eat with everybody. When I said the restaurant isn’t save for me (lots of nuts on the menu), he just said I HAVE to come and that’s what the Epipen is there for. I complained to HR and the HR lady asked why I don’t just do a therapy against allergies. Told me about some esoteric bullshit that’s supposed to cure all allergies and advised me to do that so I can better fit in with the company culture.

Just looking at the people around me (mostly colleagues, I’m not friends with this kind of people) it’s no surprise, when just about anything triggers them to vote AfD. Some actual examples:

“We have a vegetarian day at the cafeteria now. Stupid Greens forcing me to not eat meat one day a week. I’m going to vote AfD next election.”

“They built a new bicycle lane on my way to work. Now I’m forced to stick to the speed limit because of all the bicyclists on MY road blocking me. It’s a straight street, I should be able to go 80 even though it’s inner city. I’ve always been going 80 there! Stupid Greens, I’m going to vote AfD next election.”

“Supplier X stopped issuing their bikini model calendar. Everything is forbidden nowadays! Noone ever cared for bikini model calenders, but the Greens want to forbid every little piece of fun. Stupid woke culture. I’m going to vote AfD.”

And let’s not forget that one boss who told me that my life-threatening nut allergy was woke nonsense, because back in his day “everybody just ate what’s on the table and noone died, but nowadays everybody has to feel special by making up things they won’t eat.”

They just want to go back to 1950s culture, when gay people, trans people, allergies, ADHD, autism, veganism, climate change and anything other than straight white dudes and straight white housewives “didn’t exist”, because how dare the world be more complex than a Rosamunde Pilcher movie.

I have no trust in the current coalition to make that happen…

That’s what people have been saying for years and yet the AfD is already the second strongest in the last election…

I was always so confused by the tongue areas because it never seemed to work for me. Especially sweet, I tasted sweet far more at the back than on my tip.

*male anger. Angry women are still emotional and hysterical.

Soon we can translate all the GDR jokes and use them for the US.

Unfortunately I have just one contact who is actively using signal :(. Everybody else is on Whatsapp.

While I generally agree, there aren’t enough hotels who cater to special needs. For example I have two life threatening food allergies. Most hotels will tell me they can’t cater to my needs because everything is prepared in the same pots, pans and cutting boards. I can’t even have breakfast at most hotels.

The two times when I went to hotels that specifically advertised themselves as being allergy-friendly, I still ended up with 1) hazelnuts as decoration on my steak because it was Christmas and the cook had forgotten about my anaphylaxis to nuts and 2) being told on arrival that contrary to the information via email they only have a breakfast buffet where everything is prepared on the same cutting boards and it’s all contaminated with nuts.

And I’m sure I’m not the only one. People with severe gluten intolerance or other food-related restrictions are having a hard time. Hotels just don’t give a fuck for people with special needs. AirBnB or camping is currently the only way I can stay in a different city.

That doesn’t mean I think what is happening with AirBnB and the cities is great, I just wish more hotels would be accommodating to special needs so they can be an option for everyone. For me it would already suffice if I could use the fridge and just prepare my own breakfast in my room, but most hotels allow fridge-usage only for medicine.

In theory it sounds good, in practice I think it might not work so well. The problem with moderation was already mentioned. How do you stop people from posting shit in other languages, especially smaller ones that most moderators won’t know? Sure, they can use translation tools, but those aren’t perfect. I see the danger of either moderating too much (mistranslated posts) or too little.

On another note, using a common language also has a unifying aspect. Even if I can’t buy a local French product in a store in Germany, it’s still cool to read about it. Maybe it’ll even spark a discussion about similar products in other EU countries. Either way, sharing progress like “We have a locally produced alternative for this chocolate bar now in Finland” is uplifting news for others, too.

Anyway, I get where you’re coming from but I see more advantages sticking to English as a common language.